Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Beautiful tree being felled today in Conway Road :(
The tree opposite our house in Conway is being felled today - I just found out as the tree surgeons arrived. Apparently, it is not considered safe due to a lean. And I think some of the neighbours are worried about the effect of the roots on their homes.
I and other neighbours have tried to contact the council for months about getting it cut back. couldn't get through and emails were not answered. The tree hasn't been maintained for years.
I'm heartbroken. It seems there's nothing I can do now to save this beautiful old tree that gives so much character to our road.
I don't know how much this is related to council cuts- are tree services reduced across the borough?
I write this just to say please do look out for your trees and pressure the council to maintain them - maybe you'll be able to save trees in your road from being cut down.
Tags for Forum Posts: trees
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by shilps2 on
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If we ask the council to plant a new tree in its place, are they likely to respond positively? Is this even possible on the exact site or would it need to be elsewhere in the road- can anyone advise please? Thank you
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Permalink Reply by pamish on
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Blame the insurance companies - they would have everything buried in concrete if they had their way.
If the old tree was diseased it would not be replaced by the same species. LBH's street trees are one of four types. They use trees that dont grow too big - so it's cherry, hawthorn, mountain ash or birch. You can have a street tree planted in a suitable site if you pay for it - it's currently £210, this pays for the plant and the labour, digging up pavements etc. So replacing into an existing site should not cost so much. See the LBH tree page.
If they take out a tree they should replace it, but this seems to have slipped lately, we lost one that was sick and that's gone without trace now. Maybe you will have to get together with neighbours and pay for a new one. Short term loss of cash to benefit our children. We shouldnt encourage LBH to rely on donations but if a council loses 1/3 of its funding, and Pickles is pushing for another 10% cut next year, the long term need is going to lose.
We are currently fighting to keep two trees on this road. After years of lobbying they are fixing our crappy pavement. They have diagnosed two trees - the oldest ones - as sick. We disagree, we think its just that they are bigger so need a bit more care re digging around. We are meeting the LBH tree person tomorrow to discuss it. Wish us luck.
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They went :-(
Alex Fraser, LBH's Arboricultural and Allotments Manager, came and explained the problem with the trees. One had a fungus infection that would eventually make it dangerous; the other had one of those very overgrown bases (from grafted root stock) that was making the pavement unpassable, as well as the first sign of die-back disease. These verdicts came up because the pavement is being re-laid, they inspect the trees before doing such work. Alex spent some time explaining all this, he says he'd prefer to do this than have arguments arise when the power saws start up.
However, the good news (because we jumped in and asked) is that we will have three extra replacement trees as well as the two we lost - one for an older dead cherry mentioned above, and two extras. They will make spaces in the new tarmac for them, and we will have some choices re which species we want. No planting till the autumn, so that leaves plenty of time for us to discuss our various preferences...
These small street trees don't live for ever, and usually they can't replace like with like as the diseases, fungi etc that attack them are often species-specific so something different has to go into that ground. That's two fewer cherry blossom trees on this road for the time being, but we could choose eg an Amelanchier lamarkii which gives more year-round interest. (I've just planted one in my back yard but at a foot high it may just take more time than the ten-foot street one).
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Permalink Reply by Alisha on
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The council does seem to have changed its policy in some ways for the better, planting trees that are more suitable and arguably prettier and more varied than the old standard choices such as fast growing London plane trees, the latter able to grow to 100 feet (Russell Square). Birches, rowans, hawthorns, ginkos, etc. need less maintenance, which is a good thing for the local C tax payer, as pruning can cost £100 per tree every year. Plus the new varieties being introduced are beautiful and not too overpowering, damaging with their roots or light-blocking. You could probably write to the council suggesting a birch, for instance, or a red flowering hawthorn to replace the felled tree. And, yes, you can 'sponsor' a tree in Haringey (presumably outside your own house) for around £200+ (seems a bit steep! if you're already paying C tax). Here's a link – http://www.haringey.gov.uk/index/environment_and_transport/nature-c...
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Permalink Reply by Chris Setz on
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If anyone has difficulties contacting the council about trees, you could try the group I belong to, the Haringey Tree Wardens, email trees613@HaringeyTreeWardens.org.uk. I help organise regular Tree Walks in Haringey and so have contact with the Council's Tree Department - they seem responsive and professional to me. I know from direct experience that they're generally experts keen to help residents but they have been hit hard by government cuts, so if we in Haringey Tree Wardens can deal with it it saves the Council money.
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